Wade Phillips: This season is “obviously a nightmare”

Posted by Michael David Smith on December 12, 2013, 11:20 AM EDT

AP

Texans interim head coach Wade Phillips didn’t pull any punches when asked what this season has been like.

“Well, it’s obviously a nightmare,” Phillips said on a conference call with Indianapolis reporters. “It’s been so many games and so close, and just not being able to make the one or two plays. It’s not like we’re getting beat by 20 points every game, so it’s been very frustrating.”

Phillips is right, to a point: The Texans’ last seven losses have all been by seven points or fewer. Of course, one of Houston’s two wins came on a field goal as time expired, and the other was in overtime. So while you can say that the Texans have been only one or two plays away from winning any of their last seven games, you can also say the Texans are only a couple plays away from being 0-13.

Still, Phillips says it’s frustrating because the Texans are losing a lot of games they think they can win.

“You feel like you can win, but we haven’t,” Phillips said.

Some would say the best thing for the future of the franchise would be to lose their last three games and earn the first pick in the draft. But Phillips doesn’t see it that way.

“It’s pride and people are playing for their jobs and coaching for their jobs, obviously,” Phillips said.

Phillips is coaching for an opportunity to keep his job, and to get the “interim” removed from his title. He’d like to think he’s the man to keep the Texans’ 2014 season from being a repeat nightmare.

The Texans were never good. They just had the luxury of being in the worst division in the NFL a couple seasons. They just had the luxury of playing against the Jaguars, Titans, and the Manning/Luck less Colts.

azarkhan says:Dec 12, 2013 11:51 AM

The Patriots tore the heart out of the Texans, first in week 14 of the 2012 season when they beat the 11-1 Texans 42-14 on MNF (the letterman jacket game), then again when they beat the Texans in the playoffs 41-28. The Texans never recovered.

But they have RGIII who is a valuable player, and maybe they can trade him instead of Kirk, and rebuild the team with what they get in return for him. It’s possible.

Whatever they do, I think WAS has a lot of interesting pieces to work with and they can do a lot of creative things to reshape the team. They may have it worse than any team today because of the lack of a #1 draft pick and the coaching drama going on, but that stuff can be changed before the next season starts.

riverhorsey says:
Dec 12, 2013 11:41 AM
Texans need to clean house and get a strong coach in there fast. They have the talent to win it all now but they have to turn it around at QB fast.
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I don’t agree. They don’t have a solid QB, for one thing. Adrian Foster has been banged up and hasn’t been right since 2011. Tate is probably gone in free agency. They have Andre Johnson, but he’s aging quickly.

They need a QB. Keenum is not the answer, and clearly Schaub isn’t either. They need secondary players and receivers, too.

Here’s an interesting stat (that someone national will scoop up and not give me credit)…..

the 2013 Houston Texans Defense is 27th in the NFL in points and 3rd in the NFL in yards.
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The points stat could be misleading – that’s for the team, not just the defense. I seem to remember five straight games with a pick-six, so that’s thirty points that are not against the defense.

On top of everything else, it isn’t a particularly great season to be getting the #1 overall pick. It isn’t a year when there’s “the guy” followed by everybody else. It’s a pretty deep pool, whether you’re needing a QB, OT, or a pass rusher.

It’s unlikely that there will be anyone willing to give up a bunch of picks to move up, so they’d be just as well having the 6th pick and saving $6 million or so.

Don’t worry, Wade. You still get to play the Titans again. They let you up off the mat in week 2 and they haven’t done squat against the other AFC South teams in years (still winless in the division this year). I like the Texans’ chances to finish the season on a high note. Unfortunately, since I’m a Titans fan.

Here’s an interesting stat (that someone national will scoop up and not give me credit)…..

the 2013 Houston Texans Defense is 27th in the NFL in points and 3rd in the NFL in yards.
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The points stat could be misleading – that’s for the team, not just the defense. I seem to remember five straight games with a pick-six, so that’s thirty points that are not against the defense.
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They’ve actually given up I believe 10 non offensive TDs. Take that 70 points off the board and they are in the top 10 in scoring D.

the 2013 Houston Texans Defense is 27th in the NFL in points and 3rd in the NFL in yards.
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Seven pick-sixes contributed to that along with turnovers at their own 5-20 yard line.

rockybev35 says:Dec 12, 2013 5:06 PM

“8to80texansblog”…
So statistically they are a top 10 defense but you and I both know they have had trouble, outside of Watt, in getting to the QB. In a defensive scheme that is predicated on pressuring the QB, and playing man coverage…it is why we can’t get off the field often. Also, for as good as the Defense was early in the season, every game they would play great… Except the 98, 97 and 99 yard drives in successive weeks… that was simply mind boggling. Kareem seems to have regressed from last year, never turns towards the ball. Whitney and Reed have been weak for the most part this year.

My hope is the new HC is Defensive minded, innovative with exotic/creative blitz packages. Like the offense, the D has become predictable with Wade.

azarkhan says:
Dec 12, 2013 11:51 AM
The Patriots tore the heart out of the Texans, first in week 14 of the 2012 season when they beat the 11-1 Texans 42-14 on MNF (the letterman jacket game), then again when they beat the Texans in the playoffs 41-28. The Texans never recovered.
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I don’t believe every team the Pats pounded lost 11 in a row a year later. The Packers spanked them pretty good last year and they came back a rolled the Ravens…yeah those Ravens. You’re giving the Pats (and the jackets) a little too much credit.

htown1035 says:Dec 17, 2013 11:28 AM

azarkhan says:
Dec 12, 2013 11:51 AM
The Patriots tore the heart out of the Texans, first in week 14 of the 2012 season when they beat the 11-1 Texans 42-14 on MNF (the letterman jacket game), then again when they beat the Texans in the playoffs 41-28. The Texans never recovered.

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If it were the Patriots that started all of this, then why didn’t the Patriots crush them the last time they played?

Patriot fans love giving themselves credit for other teams’ failures. Must be that whole Boston insecurity thing they have going on there.